Officials release victim’s names

November 15, 2012

A mother and her two children were identified Wednesday as being the three victims in a Lewis County barn fire earlier this week.

According to a statement issued by the Lewis County Sheriff's Department, the bodies of 32-year-old Beth Ann Kraus, 5-year-old Kaden Edward Kraus and 3-year-old Kiera Marie Kraus were found in the aftermath of a fire on Crooked Run Road in the Alum Bridge community.

The bodies had been taken to the state Medical's Examiners Office shortly after their discovery in the rubble.

Lewis County sheriff's deputies were dispatched to the scene Monday after receiving a report that three people had perished in a barn on the property. The barn, according to the report, is believed to have caught fire some time between 7:30 p.m. Sunday and 7:30 a.m. Monday. The cause of the fire has not been determined, and the state Fire Marshal's office has been asked to investigate the incident.